Glorious Hope

W
e are accustomed to the changing seasons. Spring comes after
a long winter, the long-awaited
spring. This year it has a different flavour.
We feel it not only from the snow that is
still on the ground but from our television
screens and other media outlets and even
among people. The world is different and
we can feel it. It is sick. Besides human
grudges and anger that are expressed
Contents:
Editorial - Natasha Legierski ................................................................ 26
From the Executive Secretary - George Sommer ........................... 27
Letter to the Convention - Stephen E. Markwood .............................. 27
Easter Meditation - Ján Banko............................................................. 28
Ve3⁄4konoèné zamyslenie - Ján Banko .................................................. 29
Jubilee - Editors ...................................................................................... 30
Kulaté jubileum - Redakce.................................................................... 30
Christian Group Methuselah - Ján Banko ......................................... 31
Køesanská skupina Matuzalém - Ján Banko .................................... 31
Makers and Builders of a Convention: Vedra and Králíèek .......... 32
The Observation Tower - John E. Karanko........................................ 33
Sermon on Abraham, Part 4 - Andrew Kmetko................................ 34
TWR: The Listener’s Post - George Cooper.................................... 35
BWA: Denton Lotz ................................................................................. 36
Poém: Odpuštìní - Sylvia Kulich ......................................................... 36
Poém: Poutnik - Sylvia Kulich............................................................... 37
From Our Churches: Winsor - Stan Mantle ..................................... 38
In Memory - Betty Sadowski ................................................................ 39
From Our Readers................................................................................. 40
Check It Out: Czech and Slovak Christian Resources.................. 40
Youth Scene - Kateøina Jariabková...................................................... 41
Children’s Corner: Fireflies, Part 4 - Jan Karafiát ........................... 42
Broučci, 4. èást - Jan Karafiát............................ 44
From the President - Robert Dvorak .................................................. 46
Ladies’ Page - Heather Mantle............................................................ 47
Poem - Spiritual Springtime - Leona Choy........................................ 48
Glorious Hope / Slavná nadìje
March–April 2003, Vol. 29, No 2
(USPS 009334), ISSN 0700-5202
Published Bi-Monthly by
The Czechoslovak Baptist Convention
of USA and Canada
Periodical postage paid in Philippi, WV.
Editor-in-Chief: Natasha Legierski
1524 Lancaster Dr., #134,
Oakville, ON, L6H 2Z2, Canada
email: [email protected]
You may send articles to above address
Electronic Publishing and Art: Vit Malek
email: [email protected]
Assistant Editors: Janice Cermak, Ján Banko
Editorial Staff: George Sommer,
George Legierski, Joseph Novak
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to
in wars there are also diseases for
which there are no cures. All this
weighs upon us like a heavy burden
that we cannot carry. Our outlook
on the world is changing. So are
our values. So simply do our lives
begin to resemble chaos. How can
we orient ourselves in this chaos?
Into this human chaos comes
spring with its Easter message. Into
this chaos our Lord Jesus’ cry “It
is finished!” loudly resonates. It is
as powerful as it was on the cross
when the earth was afflicted by the
same sickness as today. It is a sickness that has been slinking behind
humans for thousands of years, and it sinks its teeth into a person
when they turn their back on the cross and ignore the voice of
the Lord Jesus. How easily people fall into this situation!
The cry “It is finished” dismisses the possibility of any continuing action. The Lord Jesus completed the work of salvation
for people. His sacrifice and immense suffering on the cross
formed a large punctuation mark after the various miseries of
people. That cry changed the world into a blossoming crown of
a tree. It is filled with the flowers of hope, and they retain their
freshness despite the passing millennia. They bring hope for a
better life, for a life in communion with the Lord Jesus Christ,
our Savior. They are flowers of hope for an eternal life in the
kingdom of God.
Flowers of hope are quite different from the plants in gardens
or in vases. Those die. Flowers of hope, however, blossom on,
and there are many of them. They blossom for every person.
It is enough to reach out of the misery of this earth and pick
one. It is, however, necessary to care for these flowers so they
do not wilt. The freshness of these flowers of hope depends on
our personal contact with God. Their freshness overcomes chaos.
Their scent influences the taste of spring. From their scent peace
also spreads.
Are our flowers wilting? Let fresh flowers adorn the Church
of Christ.
Editor-in-Chief Natasha Legierski
Z
vykli jsme si již na støídající se roèní období. Po dlouhé
zimì pøichází jaro. Oèekávané jaro. Tento rok má však
jinou pøíchu. Cítíme ji nejen z ležícího snìhu na polích,
z televizních obrazovek a dalších sdìlovacích prostøedkù, ale i mezi
lidmi. Cítíme, že svìt je jiný. Svìt je nemocný. Kromì lidské zloby
a nevraživosti projevující se ve válkách, ohrožují lidstvo i rùzné
nemoci, na které neexistuje lék. Všechno to na nás doléhá jako tìžké
+
Pokraèování na stranì 38
Publication Office:
Glorious Hope / Slavná nadìje
Rt. 4, Box 58D, Philippi, WV 26416-9717 USA
email: [email protected]
Next issue deadline - April 15, 2003
26
Printed on recycled paper
Front Cover: Maria Gabankova–Amazing Grace,
acrylic, 38” x 26”
Back Cover: Corel Photo–Japanese Garden
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
T
he theme and verse of the 94th annual convention, which
For children 4–12, the convention pays meals.
has been set for July 3–6, 2003, in Philippi, are: You’ll Never
•
Dates
for the 95th annual convention are tentatively set for July
Walk Alone.
1–4 or 8–11, 2004.
I will place my dwelling in your midst, and I shall not abhor you. And I will
•Next mid-year meeting of the General Board will be held at Hatch
walk among you, and will be your God, and you shall be my people.
Hollow Baptist Church, Union City, Pennsylvania, in October or
Leviticus 26:11,12
November 2003. Hatch Hollow Baptist Church will be celebrating
Bible Studies: High Priestly Prayer
John 17
its 75th anniversary.
Jesus Prays for Himself John
17:1–5
Jesus Prays for Disciples John
17:6–19
• The Registration Form is available on the convention web page.
Jesus Prays for Future Believers John 17:20–26
You can print it, fill it out, and mail it to Helen Pojman.
Dr. Andrew Kmetko—English, and Slavo Kral —Slovak
We have more information about the annual convention, includSpecial guests at the 94th convention will be a musical group,
ing the convention program, on our web page:
Methuselah (Matuzalém), from Bratislava. It is a very talented group
www.ab.edu/czslbaptconv
of five members from Bratislava Baptist Church, Slovakia. They
will also perform in many churches in Canada and the USA. They
have just finished recording a new CD, which will be available at
George Sommer,
the convention in Philippi.
Executive Secretary
Other important information:
Annual convention coordinator
•Canadian delegates will be paying the registration fee, meals,
o
and accommodation in Canadian dollars. This will simplify
payment procedures and will be easier
on their pockets.
•There will be a lot of exciting events
during the 94th annual convention.
Also Third Annual Independence Day
Fireworks with ice-cream social, “Old
Fashioned Hymn Singing with Bob Dvorak at the Piano,” Methuselah concerts,
Saturday Night Concert, obecenstvi at the
Sommers Sunday afternoon, to name
Spring, 2003
just a few. And of course—Methuselah
Brothers and Sisters in Christ of the Czechoslovak Baptist Convention:
every night. Come and see!!
As the sun melts away snow from what we hope is the last vestige of a
•Prices for accommodation will be the
long, harsh winter, we in the Alderson-Broaddus College family begin to
same as last year:
think of warm summer days. With the warmth of summer also comes the
Kincaid, $12/night/bed. Children 12
warmth of renewing our long friendship when you visit the mountaintop
and under sleep free on a bed! Kincaid
in July.
is an air-conditioned dormitory. Suite
For over fifteen years, the Czechoslovak Baptist Convention and Alderconsists of 3 bedrooms and living
son-Broaddus College have been partners in carrying out God’s calling in
room.
the Baptist tradition: your members serving God by spreading the good
Priestley will be closed for renovation
news of Jesus’ love in your local communities, while we here at A-B serve
this summer. Also Benedum will not
God by providing an excellent education rooted in Christian values.
be available.
Yet today, in a time of war in Iraq, a stock market which has suffered
losses
for three years, and national and state economies bordering on reces•For Philippi Lodging Motel accomsion,
we
struggle to find hope while living in two of the greatest countries
modation, make your own reservation:
in
the
world.
Yet we know that our hope is not in things of this world,
304-457-5888. Price $45.00 plus state
but
our
hope
is
in Jesus, for “faith is being sure of what we hope for and
tax per room per night. State that you
certain
of
what
we
do not see” (Hebrews 11:1).
are from the Czechoslovak Baptist
As
always,
we
look
forward to welcoming you back up on the mountaintop
Convention to qualify for a special
in
the
hope
that
we
all
can find hope in strengthening our faith in God.
price. Ten rooms are reserved until
June 29, 2003.
Yours in Christ,
• Meal prices will be the same as last
year: Breakfast–$3.90, Lunch–$5.80,
Dinner–$6.60, and Banquet–$9.90.
Children 13–17 pay 1⁄2 price; the
other half is paid by the convention.
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
27
Easter Meditation
Ján Banko
B
ut if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus
from the dead dwells in you, He who
raised Christ from the dead will also
give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit
who dwells in you” (Romans 8:11).
This Bible verse brings the essence of
the Easter message, which has also been
expressed by the apostle Paul in another passage of the Holy Scriptures: “For I delivered
to you first of all that which I also received:
that Christ died for our sins according to the
Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that
He rose again the third day according to the
Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3–4).
In Romans 8:11, though, the apostle Paul moves even further
and teaches us the full meaning of the resurrection of the Lord
Jesus Christ from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. The
resurrection of Christ is an assurance for every child of God, for
every newborn believer, that he or she will also be quickened by
the Holy Spirit. Let us now study the Bible truths that are strongly
proven by Christ’s resurrection.
•The reality of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ proves
the existence of an omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent
God, who is the sovereign Creator and Lord of the whole existing universe—of all living creatures as well as of the material
world. Only the Creator of life
has the power to raise a dead
person to life again. God is
motivated for this action by
His love for His creation. The
apostle John speaks about this
love of God in the following
words: “In this the love of God
was manifested toward us, that
God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we
might live through Him. In this
is love, not that we loved God,
but that He loved us and sent
His Son to be the propitiation for
our sins” (1 John 4:9–10).
•The resurrection of Christ also proves that the Lord Jesus Christ
is the very Son of God. We can see it also in the statement of
the apostle Paul, who in the letter to the Romans teaches about
“…His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of
David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God
with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection
from the dead” (Romans 1:3–4).
• One of the most important facts for us human beings is that
28
the resurrection of Jesus Christ proves that He is
the Saviour of the world. It is a vital testimony,
that God sent the Lord Jesus Christ to this earth
to redeem, save and give the gift of eternal life to
all who believe in Him. The Word of God explains:
“If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and
believe in your heart that God has raised Him from
the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one
believes to righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made to salvation” (Romans 10:9–10).
• The Holy Spirit that dwells in every believer is
a guarantee that God, who has raised the Lord
Jesus Christ from the dead by the power of the
Holy Spirit, will by the same Spirit give life to the mortal bodies
of God’s children. It is a total remake and renewal of life, based
on the qualitatively new foundation of the resurrection of God’s
children in incorruptible, eternal and perfect bodies. The particular phases of this fascinating event of resurrection are described
by the apostle Paul as follows: “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh
and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption
inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all
sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling
of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the
dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this
corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put
on immortality” (1 Corinthians
15:50–53).
This Easter meditation based
on God’s Word is not a mere
sequence of biblical facts; its
purpose is to lead every reader
to a deeper consideration. To
those who do not yet believe in
the Lord Jesus Christ as their
personal Saviour, the following
words of Christ resound: “The
time is fulfilled, and the kingdom
of God is at hand. Repent, and
believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:
15). All who desire to partake
in the resurrection to eternal life must personally acknowledge
God’s absolute sovereignty and then confess their sins in a godly
sorrow of repentance, abandon the old life-style and believe in
the gospel—that joyful message about salvation in the substitutional sacrifice and the resurrection of God’s Son, the Lord Jesus
Christ.
And for all of us, who already believe in the Lord Jesus Christ,
there is a compelling warning from our Lord: “Take heed, watch
+
Continues on next page
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
Ve3⁄4konoèné zamyslenie
Ján Banko
A
ak prebýva vo vás Duch Toho, ktorý Ježiša vzkriesil z màtvych,
tak Ten, ktorý Krista Ježiša vzkriesil z màtvych, aj vaše
smrte3⁄4né telá oživí svojím Duchom, prebývajúcim vo vás.”
(Rímskym 8,11)
Uvedený Biblický verš nám predkladá podstatu Ve3⁄4konoèného
posolstva, ktorú apoštol Pavel na inom mieste Svätého Písma
vyjadril takto: „Odovzdal som vám totiž predovšetkým, èo som aj sám
prijal, že Kristus umrel pre naše hriechy pod3⁄4a Písem a bol pochovaný
a v tretí deò bol vzkriesený pod3⁄4a Písem.” (1. list Korintským 15,3–4)
V liste Rímskym 8,11 však apoštol Pavel ide ešte ïalej a
vyuèuje nás, èo všetko pre Božie deti znamená vzkriesenie Pána
Ježiša Krista z màtvych mocou Svätého Ducha.
Vzkriesenie Kristovo je totiž uistením pre
každého znovuzrodeného veriaceho èloveka, že
tiež bude oživený Duchom Svätým. Poïme však
po poriadku a pozrime sa najprv na to, ktoré
Biblické pravdy sú Kristovým vzkriesením mocne
dosvedèené a potvrdené:
• Skutoènos vzkriesenia Pána Ježiša Krista
potvrdzuje existenciu všemohúceho,
vševedúceho a všadeprítomného Boha, ktorý
je zvrchovaným Stvorite3⁄4om a Pánom celého
existujúceho sveta – živého i neživého. Jedine
Tvorca života má moc znovu vzkriesi màtvu
bytos k životu. Pán Boh tak koná z lásky
ku svojmu stvoreniu. Apoštol Ján sa o tejto
Božej láske vyjadruje nasledovnými slovami:
„V tom sa prejavila Božia láska k nám, že svojho
jednorodeného Syna poslal Boh na svet, aby sme
žili skrze Neho. V tom je láska, že nie my sme
milovali Boha, ale že On miloval nás a poslal
svojho Syna ako obe zmierenia za naše hriechy.” (1.list Jánov
4,9–10)
• Kristovo vzkriesenie z màtvych okrem iného potvrdzuje aj to,
že Pán Ježiš Kristus je naozaj Boží Syn. Vidíme to napríklad z
výroku apoštola Pavla, ktorý v liste Rímskym uèí „o Jeho Synovi,
ktorý sa pod3⁄4a tela narodil z potomstva Dávidovho, ktorý je pod3⁄4a
Ducha svätosti ustanovený od vzkriesenia z màtvych ako Boží Syn
s mocou – o Ježišovi Kristovi, našom Pánovi.” (Rímskym 1,3–4)
• Mimoriadny význam pre èloveka má však skutoènos, že
vzkriesenie Kristovo je potvrdením toho, že On je Spasite3⁄4
sveta. Je svedectvom o tom, že Pána Ježiša Krista poslal na túto
zem Pán Boh, aby vykúpil a spasil každého, kto v Neho uverí a
daroval mu život veèný. Slovo Božie o tom svedèí nasledovne:
„Ak ústami vyznávaš Pána Ježiša a v srdci veríš, že Ho Boh vzkriesil
z màtvych, budeš spasený; lebo srdcom veríme na spravodlivos a
ústami vyznávame na spasenie.” (Rímskym 10,9–10)
• Duch Svätý, ktorý prebýva vo veriacom èloveku je zárukou toho,
že Pán Boh, ktorý mocou Svätého Ducha vzkriesil Pána Ježiša
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
Krista z màtvych, tým istým Duchom oživí aj smrte3⁄4né telá Božích
detí. Jedná sa tu o znovuobnovenie života, ovšem na kvalitatívne
novom základe vzkriesenia Božích detí v neporušite3⁄4nom,
veènom a dokonalom tele. Priebeh tejto fascinujúcej udalosti
zmàtvychvstania popisuje apoštol Pavel takto: „To však tvrdím,
bratia, že telo a krv nemôžu dosiahnu dedièstvo krá3⁄4ovstva Božieho,
ani porušite3⁄4nos nezdedí neporušite3⁄4nos. Ajh3⁄4a, poviem vám
tajomstvo: všetci neumrieme, ale všetci sa premeníme, razom, ihneï,
len èo zaznie hlas poslednej trúby. Lebo zaznie trúba a màtvi budú
vzkriesení neporušite3⁄4ní a my sa premeníme. Veï porušite3⁄4né telo
musí obliec neporušite3⁄4nos a smrte3⁄4né musí obliec nesmrte3⁄4nos.”
(1. list Korintským 15,50–53)
Táto Ve3⁄4konoèná úvaha nad Božím Slovom nie
je len púhym zoradením Biblických faktov, ale má
vies každého èitate3⁄4a k hlbokému zamysleniu.
Pre tých, ktorí ešte neuverili v Pána Ježiša
Krista, ako svojho osobného Spasite3⁄4a, znejú
Kristove slová, keï „zvestoval evanjelium Božie
a hovoril: Naplnil sa èas a priblížilo sa krá3⁄4ovstvo
Božie; pokánie èiòte a verte v evanjelium!”
(Marek 1,14b–15) Každý, kto túži ma úèas na
vzkriesení k životu veènému, potrebuje osobne
uzna Božie zvrchované Panstvo, v zármutku
pokánia vyzna svoje hriechy, opusti starý
spôsob života a uveri evanjeliu – tej radostnej
zvesti o spasení v zástupnej obeti a vzkriesení
Božieho Syna, Pána Ježiša Krista.
A pre všetkých nás, ktorí sme uverili v Pána
Ježiša Krista, znie naliehavé varovanie nášho
Pána: „Majte sa na pozore, bdejte, lebo neviete,
kedy príde èas. Ako èlovek, vzdialený na cestách,
keï opúšal dom a svojim sluhom dal moc, každému
urèil jeho prácu a vrátnikovi naložil, aby bdel, tak aj vy bdejte; lebo
neviete, kedy príde pán domu, èi veèer, èi o polnoci, èi keï kohút spieva,
a èi ráno. Aby vás nenašiel spa, keï príde neèakane. A èo vám hovorím,
hovorím všetkým: Bdejte!” (Marek 13,33–37)
o
Easter … Continues from page 28
and pray; for you do not know when the time is. It is like a man going
to a far country, who left his house and gave authority to his servants,
and to each his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to watch.
Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is
coming—in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or
in the morning—lest, coming suddenly, he find you sleeping. And what
I say to you, I say to all: Watch!” (Mark 13:33–37)
o
29
Kulaté jubileum
Jubilee
T
Ž
ivot èlovìka probíhá
v rùzných
fázích.
Jednotlivá období se
od sebe liší a jsou zasazena do
rozdílného prostøedí. Každý
jedinec je vybaven pestrou
paletou vlastností, schopností a
nadáním. V tom spoèívá krása
spoleèenství a bohatství lidského
bytí. To splétá vztahy mezi
lidmi do mohutných provazcù
porozumìní. Vzájemné sdílení
se je pøirozenou souèástí života.
Èlovìk nemusí prožívat své
radosti a strasti sám.
and hard times on their own.
Radostnou událostí bylo setkání s našimi milými Marijou
A joyful event was meeting our beloved Marija and George
a
Jiøím
Sommerovými.
Sommer. We remembered the significant anniversary of sister
Pøipomìli jsme si vzácné
Marija, which happened this
jubileum
sestry Marije, kterého
January. We cannot believe that
se
dožila
letos v lednu. Nechce
our sister should belong in the
se
nám
vìøit,
že by sestra mìla
group of honoured people whose
patøit
do
této
skupiny
oslavencù,
age begins with the number six.
jejichž
poèáteèní
èíslicí
je èíslo
Sister Marija’s approach to both
šest.
Rozhodnì
o
tom
nesvìdèí
her professional and personal life
pøístup sestry Marije k její práci
certainly does not testify to it!
v profesionálním i soukromém
Her élan, enthusiasm and readiživotì! Svým elánem, nadšením
ness to help everywhere she is
i pohotovostí pomoci všude,
needed amazes the participants
kde je potøeba, pøekvapuje
of our annual convention again
znovu a znovu úèastníky naší
and again. At the convention
každoroèní konvence.
she faithfully serves with her
Na této konvenci sestra vìrnì
musical gifts, giving glory to
slouží
svým hudebním nadáním
God and uplifting everyone,
k
Boží
slávì i povzbuzení
including the young generation.
pøítomných,
vèetnì mladé
Our sister is a faithful partner in
generace.
Sestra
je vìrnou
work to our general secretary,
spoleènicí
pøi
práci
našeho
brother George. I cannot leave
tajemníka
konvence,
bratra
out the words of a wise observer:
Jiøího.
Nemohu
nevzpomenout
“Behind every successful man
slova moudrého pozorovatele:
there is a woman!”
„Za každým úspìšným mužem
Sister Marija was born in the
se skrývá žena!“
former Yugoslavia into the family
Setra se narodila v bývalé
of the preacher Ivan Vlasic. She
Jugoslávii
v rodinì kazatele
began musical studies in childMarija Sommer
Ivana
Vlašiæe.
Hudbu studovala
hood and after finishing them
od
útlého
dìtství
a
po
dokonèení
studií
vyuèovala
hru na klavír.
she taught piano. She married into the former Czechoslovakia
Provdala
se
do
bývalého
Èeskoslovenska
a
spolu
s manželem
and, together with her husband, traveled to the United States,
vycestovali
do
Spojených
státù,
kde
bylo
sestøe
nabídnuto
where she was offered a position as a professor of music and
místo
profesorky
hudby
a
hudební
výchovy
na
Aldersonmusic education at Alderson-Broaddus College in Philippi, West
Broddus
College
ve
Philippi,
v
Západní
Virginii.
Skuteènost,
Virginia. The fact that our sister still works at this school speaks
že sestra na této univerzitì stále pùsobí, hovoøí sama za sebe.
for itself. The beginnings could not have been easy, especially
Zaèátky jistì nebyly snadné, zvláštì bez znalosti anglického
without English. Sister Marija with her approach overcame all
jazyka. Sestra Marija se svým pøístupem dokázala vypoøádat se
situations and has numerous achievements on her resume. (She
he life of a person goes
through different phases.
These differ from one
another and are set in different
circumstances. Every individual
has their own array of characteristics, skills and gifts. In that
lies the beauty of fellowship and
the richness of human existence.
It knits relationships between
people into giant ropes of understanding. Mutual communication
is a natural part of life. A person
does not have to experience joys
+
30
Continues on page 47
+
Pokraèování na stranì 47
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
Schedule of the ministry
of the Christian singing group
Vystúpenia
kresanskej hudobnej skupiny
Methuselah
Matuzalém
in Canada and in the USA
I
v Kanade a v USA
V
n the last issue of our magazine we informed you about
minulom vydaní nášho èasopisu sme Vás informovali
the visit of the Christian singing group Methuselah
o pripravovanej návšteve slovenskej hudobnej skupiny
from Slovakia. They will minister with their program
Matuzalém, ktorá vystúpi so svojím programom na
in North America between June 12 and July 14 this year.
severoamerickom kontinente v období medzi 12. júnom
Now we would like to inform you about the tentative
a 14. júlom tohoto roku. Chceme Vás teraz poinformova
schedule of their performances. A detailed program will be
o predbežnom programe ich vystúpení. Presný program
available in late May on the web page of the Czechoslovak
jednotlivých vystúpení bude už od druhej polovice mája k
Baptist Convention of the
dispozícii na internetovej stránke
USA and Canada—http:
Èeskoslovenskej Baptistickej
//www.ab.edu/czslbaptconv
Konvencie USA a Kanady,
A preliminary schedule of
ktorú nájdete na adrese http://
their ministry is as follows:
www.ab.edu/czslbaptconv
•Saturday, June 14 – Picnic
Predbežný zoznam jednotlivých
of Czechoslovak Associavystúpení je nasledovný:
tion, St. Jacobs, Ontario,
•Sobota, 14. júna – Piknik
Canada
Èeskoslovenského združenia,
•Sunday, June 15
St.Jacobs, Ontario, Kanada
– Czechoslovak Baptist
•Nede3⁄4a, 15. júna –
Church, Toronto, Ontario,
Èeskoslovenský baptistický
Canada
zbor, Toronto, Ontario,
•Sunday, June 15 in the
Kanada
evening – Bayfair Bap•Nede3⁄4a, 15. júna veèer
tist Church, Pickering,
– Bayfair Baptist Church,
Ontario, Canada
Pickering, Ontario, Kanada
•Wednesday, June 18
•Streda, 18. júna –
– Czechoslovak Baptist
Èeskoslovenský baptistický
Church, Toronto
zbor, Toronto
•Saturday, June 21 – Czech
•Sobota, 21. júna – Èeský
and Slovak Day of
a Slovenský Deò Kanady,
Canada, Masaryktown,
Masaryktown, Toronto
Toronto
Christian singing group Methuselah
•Nede3⁄4a, 22. júna – Slovenský
1st row from left: Daniel Valenta, Slávo Krá3⁄4, Daniel Šaling;
•Sunday, June 22 – St.
evanjelický zbor a.v. sv.Pavla,
2nd row: Dušan Janèula, Peter Rapoš
Paul’s Lutheran Church,
Toronto
Toronto
•V období od 23. do 29. júna vystúpenia organizované
•Between June 23 and June 29 – performances organized
cirkevným zborom Grace Baptist Church a cirkevným
by Grace Baptist Church and by the Evangelical Slavic
zborom Evanjelizaèná Slovanská Misia, Windsor, Ontario,
Mission, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
Kanada
•Between July 3 and July 6 - ministry at the 94th Annual
•V období od 3. do 6. júla vystúpenia v rámci 94.výroèného
Convention of Czechoslovak Baptists in the USA and
stretnutia Èeskoslovenskej Baptistickej Konvencie USA a
Canada, Philippi, West Virginia, USA
Kanady vo Philippi, West Virginia, USA
•V období od 7. do 12. júla služba v niektorých cirkevných
•Between July 7 and July 12 – ministry in some of the
zboroch, ktoré sú súèasou Èeskoslovenskej Baptistickej
churches affiliated with the Czechoslovak Baptist
Konvencie v Spojených štátoch.
Convention in the USA.
Dear readers, we invite you to visit these performances,
and we wish God’s manifold blessings for the singing
group Methuselah during their ministry in the USA and
Canada.
Ján Banko
o
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
Milí èitatelia, srdeène Vás pozývame k návšteve jednotlivých
podujatí a hudobnej skupine Matuzalém prajeme pri ich pobyte
a službe v USA a v Kanade hojnos Božieho požehnania.
Ján Banko
o
31
Miss L. Vedra and Václav Králíèek
Miss L. Vedra
M
rs. A. Èepeláková passed away after a severe
illness, on March 21, 1894. A new woman
missionary was needed. Miss L. Vedra, a
consecrated Christian woman, was called by the First
Bohemian Baptist Church to fill the vacancy. Deciding
to equip herself for this great task, she went to the Baptist
Missionary Training School for two years of study. In
1898 she undertook the work in the church. Her activities in Sunday School, Girls’ Club, women’s mission
circles, and among the sick, deserted, and forsaken won
the recognition of God and of the people she served.
To Miss Vedra belongs the distinction of organizing the
first Women’s Circle as well as the first Girls’ Circle
in the church. Thousands of boys and girls of the First
Church have passed through Miss Vedra’s Boys’ and
Girls’ Clubs. Because of her many services, it is hard
to estimate Miss Vedra’s extensive work for the Lord.
After her retirement, she continued with the church; her
prayers and interests followed the activities to which she
gave much of her life.
The minutes of the First Bohemian Baptist Church
show that the year 1900 was a difficult one. Rev. J. Kejø
received an invitation from Lorraine, Kansas, to preach
among the Czech farmers. He spent about three weeks
upon this new field, and knowing the need of the spiritually deserted people, he decided to go to Kansas as a
missionary. The need was to him the Macedonian call,
“Come over and help us.” The loss of Mr. Kejø was a
hard blow for the church. However, his leadership had
not been appreciated by all of the congregation; there
had been dissatisfaction among some members, and several left the church and established a new mission. The
church once more faced the problem of where and how
to get a pastor. Upon the recommendation of Rev. H.
Novotný of Prague, Czechoslovakia, the church extended
a unanimous call to Rev. Václav Králíèek. John Kejø left
the church for Wilson, Kansas, on July 1, 1900; and Mr.
Králíèek arrived on August 11 of the same year.
Václav Králíèek
Václav Králíèek was born in Tismice, a district of
Èeský Brod, Czechoslovakia, on April 5, 1866. He
attended the Academic Gymnasium in Prague where
he was a fellow student and a roommate of the famous
scholar and philosopher Professor Frank Drtina. In
32
1888–89 he acted as the first assistant to the head of the
Fire and Telegraph Department of Vinohrady, a suburb
of Prague. Mr. Králíèek was converted in 1886, when he
was twenty years of age. On April 25 of the same year, he
was baptized by Rev. H. Novotný and officially accepted
into the church. Immediately after his conversion Mr.
Králíèek began to be active in mission work in Prague.
Mr. Králíèek received his theological training in the
Baptist Theological Seminary of Hamburg, Germany,
from which he was graduated in 1894. For two years after
his graduation, 1895–1897, he served as associate pastor
with Rev. Henry Novotný in the Baptist Church of Prague.
From 1898 until 1900 he served as pastor of a mission in
Roudnice, Czechoslovakia. It was during this pastorate
that he received the call from the First Bohemian Baptist
Church of Chicago to succeed Rev. John Kejø. Mr. Králíèek came to Chicago in 1900, together with his wife, the
former Anna Krejcek, whom he had married on March
31, 1898. Three children were born to Rev. and Mrs.
Králíèek: Ruth, deceased; Martha, married and settled
in Provo, Utah; and Jaroslav, former consular officer of
the United States Consulate in Prague, Czechoslovakia.
Needless to say, Mr. Králíèek was not only a good pastor
but also a good husband and father, who cared well for
his family.
Upon his coming to Chicago, Mr. Králíèek discovered the various difficulties in the church caused by the
departure of several members during Mr. Kejø’s ministry.
In an attempt to remedy the situation, the new pastor
tried for years to serve also the group which had left the
church, but a union was never achieved. However, even
the schism had a few good features, because through it
new missions were started which grew into independent
churches, whose history will be traced separately.
Mr. Králíèek ministered to his church in Chicago
until 1911; then he resigned and accepted a call in Brno,
Czechoslovakia. The church remained without a minister
for some time while the members preached and took care
of their church. Among the leading members were J. J.
Zmrhal, V. Shuldes, J. Brázda, V. Brázda and others.
The church extended a call to Rev. M. J. Hnùta, but his
pastorate was very brief. In order to have some permanent missionary help, the church called Charles Brázda,
one of its own members at that time farming in the state
of Washington, to become its colporteur–missionary.
Because the church was unable to find an acceptable
+
Continues on page 35
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
The Observation Tower
The Rev. John E. Karenko
1330 Normandy Dr., Godfrey,
IL 62035
I Have Sinned
Rev. John E. Karenko
N
obody likes to admit they’ve been
wrong, but when the wrong is
against God it’s called sin, and
that’s a problem we can’t neglect, because
of the dire consequences: “The wages of
sin is death…” (Rom. 6:23).
The three words I have sinned are really
one word in the original Greek, hamarton,
which indicates the fact that an individual
has “missed the mark.” It’s an admission
that someone has missed the bullseye,
the center of the target. The above verse
in Romans indicates that 100% of us
have failed the test. Whether by much
or by little, we’ve all failed in the quest
for perfection, for obedience, for keeping the commandments, i.e., what God
requires.
However, only admitting you are wrong
is not asking for forgiveness, unless there
is with the confession also contrition and
resolve to change in the areas of failure.
That’s called repentance, a requirement
for forgiveness.
I have selected a few of the many times
we read the three words I have sinned in
the Bible as examples of both those who
made no resolve to change their behavior
and also those who, in contrast, did.
Many folks say they are wrong, but do
not change their previous misbehavior.
Examples of such insincerity are Judas
(Matt. 27:3,4), Pharoah (Exod. 9:27,34;
10:16), Balaam (Num. 22:34), Achen
(Josh. 7:20) and King Saul (1 Sam. 15:
24,30; 26:21). These men were all caught
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
with their hands in the proverbial
cookie jar, but there was no remorse,
regret or repentance to go along with
their hypocritical “confessions.”
On the other hand, the prodigal
son (Luke 15:18,21), King David (2
Sam. 12:13; 24:10,17), Job (7:20; 42:
5,6), Nehemiah (1:6,7), and Micah
(7:9, 18,19) are examples of true and
sincere contrition and change.
God knows the heart, and rejects
sham and hypocrisy. “…they that worship him must worship him in spirit
and in truth” (John 4:24). “A contrite
heart, O God, thou wilt not despise”
(Ps. 51:17).
Any sin is a capital offense and the
penalty is death (Rom. 6:23). Sin
must be paid for and it’s our choice
as to who will pay. Be assured, this is
not a trivial matter. We will pay the
penalty, unless we accept the gift of
salvation through repentance and
faith in the only Savior, Jesus Christ
the Lord.
Jesus said, “I am the way…; no
man cometh unto the Father except
by me” (John 14:6). “Neither is there
salvation in any other…” (Acts 4:12).
There is hope and room at the cross
for you. Do not delay in making this
most important decision. Come to
saving Christ now. Tomorrow may
never come; only today is the day of
salvation for you (2 Cor. 6:2; Heb.
2:3).
o
33
Sermon on Abraham
Return and Submit
Dr. Andrew Kmetko
Part 4
T
he angel of the Lord said to her,
“Return to your mistress, and
submit to her” (Gen. 16:9).
It is impossible to talk or preach about
Abraham without mentioning his wife
Sarah and her handmaid Hagar.
Abraham was promised a son by God,
and this son was to be Isaac, whose
descendants would be as numerous as the
stars. And, of course, the most important
descendant would be Jesus Christ the
Saviour.
Keep in mind the fact that Isaac was
born 26 years after the promise was
made. How long do you have to wait for
a promise to be fulfilled? With Abraham
and Isaac it was about 26 years. That’s
why Hagar came into the picture. Sarah
was about 77 years old when she hired
Hagar and then persuaded Abraham to
sleep with her. Hagar became pregnant
and bore Ishmael. Of course, Sarah considered herself beyond the child-bearing
age and, of course, she was. Sarah’s faith
at this point was weakened. After all, it
had been about 13 years and still no
child. Sarah did a very interesting thing.
She hired a mistress named Hagar with
the express purpose of Hagar becoming
a surrogate mother. She persuaded Abraham to sleep with Hagar. Now, I am not
sure how much persuading Sarah had to
do, a lot or just a little. Well, the result
was that Hagar bore Abraham a son, who
was named Ishmael.
I don’t believe this was God’s will.
Abraham was a str ict monogamist
(only one wife), but the laxer notions
of those days warranted the filling of
the harem with others who occupied
an inferior rank to that of the principal
wife, Sarah, and whose children, according to common practice, were reckoned
34
as if they were her own.
Why should not her
husband fall in wit h
those laxer notions of
marriage? Why should
he not marry the slave
girl whom t hey had
either purchased in an
Egyptian slave market
or acquired among the
other gifts with which
Pharaoh had sent them
away?
As observed in the life of Abraham,
it is evident that the principle of faith
is the true philosophy of the Christian
life. It builds on God and is satisfied
with Him. It thus becomes the source
of all righteousness. Faith, therefore, is
the highest activity of reason.
All this stands out in even more startling vividness by contrast in the story
of Hagar in the sixteenth chapter of
Genesis. Here we have the account of
the second deflection from faith in the
conduct of Abram. It is a sad one, and
the issue of the failure continued through
the following history. The failure of faith
consisted in Abram attempting at the
urging of Sarah to further the purposes
of God by human cleverness and strategy.
This is human. If we had to wait some
26 years for a promise to be fulfilled,
we just might lose our patience. At this
point, it was about 13 years since God
had promised a son to Abram and Sarah.
We sometimes make a big issue of Sarah
laughing when told she was to bear a
child (Gen. 18:12) “So Sarah laughed to
herself as she thought, ‘After I am worn
out and my master is old, will I now have
this pleasure?’” But Abraham also laughed
(Gen. 17:17) “Abraham fell face down:
he laughed and said to himself, ‘Will a
son be born to a man a hundred years
old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of
ninety?’” I think he laughed in disbelief.
So they were in the same category; Abra-
ham laughed and so
did Sarah, and it says
they laughed within
themselves. There is
an interesting comment on this event
in Romans 4:19–22:
“ Without weakening in his faith, he
faced the fact that
his body was as good
as dead—since he
was about a hundred
years old—and that Sarah’s womb was
also dead. Yet he did not waver through
unbelief regarding the promise of God,
but was strengthened in his faith and
gave glory to God, being fully persuaded
that God had power to do what He had
promised. This is why it ‘was credited to
him as righteousness.’” The N.I.V. Bible
has an interesting comment on this text:
“Abraham had some anxious moments
(Gen. 17:17–18), but God did not count
these against him. He ‘faced the fact.’”
Faith does not refuse to face reality, but
looks beyond all difficulties to God and
His promises. Sarah’s womb was also
dead. Sarah was ten years younger than
Abraham but well past child-bearing
age. They laughed. The verb is a play
on words of the name Isaac, which means
“he laughs.” The seed was promised, and
when there appeared no likelihood of the
promise being fulfilled on the human
level, there was diversion from the divine
line for raising seed through Hagar.
To deal with her barrenness, Sarah’s
plan of offering her maid to Abraham to
bear him an heir was apparently within
the social custom of the day. However,
her plan was one more example of the
futility of human efforts to achieve God’s
blessing. Although seemingly successful,
Sarah’s plan did not meet with divine
approval.
o
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
P
icture a bouquet of flowers, bathed by
sunlight through a window.
The flower of encouragement glistens in
vibrant yellow, lifting the heart:
“Your programs lead to new birth—salvation—a living relationship with God. That
is encouragement to my everyday life and in
my walk with the Lord.”
The purple flower shows royalty:
“The Bible is really the queen of all books and it was written
by people who were inspired by the Holy Spirit. Send me the
comments on Psalms 23 and 53.”
Add the variegated blossoms showing the many faces of
grace:
“We live in the last times, the time of grace. My prayer is that
the Lord will go on leading you and giving you wisdom.”
The crimson blooms speak of richness:
“Thank you for your wonderful programs. They enrich us.”
“Your programs are a great encouragement—they enrich me.
You always touch me with something.”
Then there is the fellowship flower—one stalk with several
blossoms and buds, but one blossom has dropped off:
“I miss the fellowship of Christians. I want you to give me a
contact to some Christian church where the Bible is studied. I
suffer in loneliness.”
And finally there is a bright red rose, the stem covered with
thorns:
“Right now I am in prison. Every day I listen to your Bible comments in the program. This program is very interesting.”
This bouquet donated by Czech listeners.
George Cooper for TWR SK/CZ
o
Makers and Builders … Continues from page 32
candidate for the position of pastor, they called back Mr.
Králíèek from Brno. He accepted the call and returned
to Chicago in 1913.
Under the Králíèek ministry the church advanced.
There were some families of the church who resided
in the neighborhood of Millard Avenue and 24th Street.
Permission was secured from the Millard Avenue Baptist
Church to hold weekday services in their building, as
well as Sunday School on Sunday afternoon. The Millard Avenue Baptist Church eventually disbanded, and the
First Bohemian Baptist Church took over their building
in 1916.
During World War I the church was very active in the
work of liberation of the Czech and Slovak people in
their native land. Both the pastor and the members were
very active in the movement. Rev. V. Králíèek and Mr.
J.J. Zmrhal traveled widely in the interest of this cause.
Many other members served in the National Alliance.
The comparatively small church sacrificed thousands of
dollars for the suffering people—orphans and others—in
their homeland. One great achievement of Mr. Králíèek
and Mr. Zmrhal was the securing of a resolution from the
Southern Baptist Convention demanding the breaking up
of the old Austro-Hungarian empire and the freeing of
the subjugated Czechoslovaks. This resolution was sent
to Washington, D.C., where many similar protests were
received from other organizations in America.
Mr. Králíèek resigned as pastor of the church in 1921,
closing twenty years of his remarkable ministry to the
church. At the time of his resignation, the church of two
hundred fourteen members was working in three different
districts in Chicago—on Throop Street, Millard Avenue,
and Keeler Avenue. Mr. Kralicek entered the personal
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
services of President T.G. Masaryk as an adviser, in which
capacity he served until 1925. In the early summer of that
year he returned to Prague, Czechoslovakia, where he
spent the last four years of his life in independent cultural,
literary, and religious work. During this time he lectured
extensively throughout Czechoslovakia and contributed
to various religious and secular publications. He was an
energetic man of few words, a deep thinker, a practical
theologian, a wonderful leader, an able teacher, and above
all a sincere and practical Christian. His life was a great
asset to the Czechoslovak Baptist denomination.
On February 13, 1929, Mr. Králíèek came to the end
of his earthly journey. Many mourned his loss, but he,
being dead, “yet speaketh.” His fruitful life will be an
immortal monument to his followers. Unto this day, many
are learning from him—learning how to sacrifice their lives
for God, for the Church, and for the nation.
Adapted from V. Vojta’s book Czechoslovak Baptists
In the next issue: Jaroslav Zmrhal and Edward Èatloš
o
MOVING ?
Please write to:
Glorious Hope
Rt.4, Box 58D
Philippi, WV 26416 USA
Include your mailing label from a recent
issue of Glorious Hope for faster service.
35
Baptist World Alliance News
From the General Secretary
Denton Lotz
Odpuštìní
A Prayer of Lamentation
Sylvia Kulich
C
ry aloud to the Lord!…Arise, cry out in the night…Pour out
your heart like water before the presence of the Lord!” (Lamentations 2:18, 19)
“And when Jesus drew near and saw the city he wept over it, saying,
‘Would that even today you knew the things that make for peace!’”
(Luke 19:41)
O Lord Jesus Christ, Prince of Peace, forgive our warring ways!
As you wept over Jerusalem of old because she did not know the
things that made for peace, again we have caused you to weep. We
weep with you!
We weep for the death of your children in Iraq, created in your
image, no matter the nationality, whether American, British, or Iraqi.
We weep with you!
We weep for the families who have buried their sons and daughters,
their mothers and fathers!
We weep because of the hatred and anger that has further engulfed
the Middle East. We weep because of the alienation that has pitted
nation against nation worldwide.
We weep that the name of Christ has been associated with one
group of nations and has furthered religious hatred and rivalry
between men and women of other religions.
We weep because we know Scripture teaches us that war is a sign
of our failure and our sin. We weep because we, your Church, have
failed to follow your word and become Peacemakers. Forgive our
sin, O Lord!
We weep that the mission and the message of the love of Christ
and His redemption for the world has now been hindered by what
seems to others to be a religious crusade.
We weep for the innocent boys and girls, men and women, whose
dignity for so long has been violated by a brutal dictator. Lord, save
us from evil dictators!
We weep for the effects of war upon your people: destruction,
hunger, refugees, loss of faith!
O Lord Jesus Christ, we weep with you again over Jerusalem,
your city, which has become the battlefield and root of so much war
between Jews and Muslims, and this war! Teach us the things that
make for peace! Give us the power and courage to hear your words,
“Blessed are the Peacemakers!”
Give us peace, O Lord: “Dona nobis pacem!”
Myslel jsem, že mám dostatek lásky,
vždy jsi byl v mém srdci, Pane,
staèilo však zlé slovo,
nepravdivé slovo
zraòující slovo,
slovo bez lásky
a najednou sám žebrám o lásku.
Kam se podìla? Vždy jsem jí tolik mìl.
Nìco se bolavì dotklo mého já,
mé nitro je zranìno,
hledám svou ztracenou lásku,
hledám jí, nemohu bez ní žít,
vím, kde jí hledat je u Tebe Ježíši,
ale nemùže proniknout,
protože mé já mne cele zaplnilo
prosím o nì znovu a znovu,
ukazuješ mi cestu Pane
a já vidím Tvùj køíž,
tyèí se pøede mnou a ke mì jasnì
doléhají Tvá slova…
Otèe, odpus jim, nebo nevìdí co èiní.
Najednou se stydím, Pane,
a èím více se stydím, tím více zalévá
mé srdce Tvá Láska
a jíž je tolik, že jí mohu pøinést
i tìm co mi tolik ublížili.
Dìkuji Ti Pane, že mé já vyprázdnilo
znovu místo pro Tebe!
o
36
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
Zprávy Baptist World Alliance
Denton Lotz
Generální tajemník
Poutník
Modlitba náøku
Sylvia Kulich
V
olej k Hospodinu!…Povstaò a bìduj za noci.…Vylévej své
srdce jako vodu pøed tváøí Panovníka!“ (Pláè Jerem. 2;19
Ekum. pøekl.)
„Když se pak pøiblížil a spatøil mìsto, rozplakal se nad ním. Øekl: ‚Ó,
kdybys i ty poznalo aspoò v tento svùj den, co by ti pøineslo pokoj!‘“
(Luk. 19;41 NBK)
Pane Ježíši Kriste, Kníže pokoje, odpus nám naši
bojechtivost!
Znovu jsme dali pøíèinu k pláèi. Pláèeš tak, jako jsi plakal
tenkrát nad Jeruzalémem, který nepoznal to, co pøináší pokoj.
Pláèeme s Tebou!
Pláèeme nad Tvými umírajícími dìtmi v Iráku, stvoøenými
ke Tvému obrazu bez rozdílu národnosti, a je to Amerièan,
Anglièan nebo Iráèan. Pláèeme s Tebou!
Pláèeme s rodinami, které pochovaly své syny a dcery, matky
a otce!
Pláèeme, protože nenávist a zloba pohltila Støední Východ.
Pláèeme, protože vzájemné odcizení postavilo národ proti národu
v celosvìtovém mìøítku.
Pláèeme, protože jméno Kristovo bylo zneužito skupinou lidí,
která vyvolala náboženskou nenávist a boje mezi muži a ženami
jiného vyznání.
Písmo nás uèí, že válka je dùkazem našeho selhání a høíchu,
proto pláèeme. My, Tvoje církev, jsme selhali v poslušenství
Tvého Slova a nestali jsme se prostøedníky pokoje, proto pláèeme.
Odpus nám naše høíchy, Pane!
Pláèeme, protože té zvìsti o vykoupení svìta a lásce Pána
Ježíše Krista je bránìno náboženskými konflikty, pøipomínající
køižácké tažení.
Pláèeme nad nevinnými chlapci a dìvèaty, muži i ženami,
jejichž dùstojnost byla tak dlouho pošlapávána krutým
diktátorem. Chraò nás pøed zlými diktátory, Pane!
Pláèeme nad Tvým lidem, který èelí následkùm války: zmatek,
hlad, vyhnanství, ztráta víry!
Pane Ježíši Kriste, znovu pláèeme s Tebou nad Tvým mìstem,
Jeruzalémem, které se stalo bojištìm a pùdou tolika válek mezi
Židy a Muslimy! Nauè nás pøinášet pokoj! Dej nám sílu a odvahu
k slyšení slov, „Požehnaní jsou ti, kteøí pøinášejí pokoj!“
Ó, Pane, daruj nám pokoj: „Dona nobis pacem!“
Sluneèní paprsky høejí mojí tváø,
je tu nové ráno, nový den.
Kam se jen podìl mùj sen?
Tak rád bych se vrátil do rùžového
svìta zapomnìní.
Ale už je tu zas,
kvas radostí, obav a trápení.
Unavený vstávám a vykroèím,
jsem hladový a žíznivý, sláb…
èas bìží, den konèí
a já zaznamenávám,
další prohraná bitva…
Odpus Pane!
Jak lehce jsem zapomìl,
ano, byl jsi tu každé ráno
a èekal na setkání se mnou,
tvá bedra byla pøipravená
nést mé bøemeno,
tvá dlaò byla vztažená k uchopení
mé,
byl jsi tu i každodenní chléb pro mou
hladovou duši
pøipravil jsi odìní, mapu, kompas,
vše na cestu,
na nic jsi, Pane, nezapomìl,
to jen já zapomínám,
že Tvá láska je mnohem vìtší, než
má víra.
o
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
37
Grace Baptist Church, Windsor, Ontario
Grace Happenings
I
t has been a while since we updated you on our life and
ministry here at Grace Baptist Church in Windsor.
A new item in our church calendar over the past
months has been a periodic Sunday night Home Fellowship.
Meeting in various homes, each gathering has been an occasion
for singing and enjoying God’s Word, as well as strengthening
ties of Christian community over refreshments and enjoyable
conversation.
A recent project has been to renovate our church lounge
as the Nobles Memorial Room. For many years a unique and
dear part of our fellowship, Ray and Anne were called home
to be with the Lord in September and November of 2001. We
look forward shortly to dedicating this room to their loving
memory.
Ministry to the children and families of the surrounding
community continues through the hosting of Community
dinners as well as Sunday school, Pioneer Clubs and a Tuesday
after-school program. A Thursday afternoon tutoring program
is a recent addition to these efforts. Outreach and service to
children is a significant attribute of the character and life of our
church. Already the touch of God on the lives of the children
is evident. A future pastor or minister may well be raised by
God from among their number.
The Great Lakes Celebration with Ralph Bell, at the end of
May and beginning of June last year, was a city-wide evangelism thrust. From the Information Session, Christian Life and
Discipleship Classes, and Operation Andrew beforehand, to
involvement in different aspects of the Celebration itself, our
church actively participated and was correspondingly blessed.
How wonderful it was to see Christians from many different
churches working together to make Christ known in our city
and country. What a blessing to see many folk responding to
the gospel and receiving the Lord as their Savior.
We are presently looking forward to a joint Good Friday Service with several local churches and the wonderful resurrection
celebration of Easter Sunday. This will happily coincide with
the baptism of one of our young people, Benjamin Blake.
A picture which informs our life as the people of God,
whether in Windsor or wherever the Lord has placed us, is
the one sketched by Paul in Philippians 3:14:
I press toward the mark for the PRIZE
of the high calling of God in CHRIST JESUS.
This was illustrated in living color one evening last summer,
as we held our 10th annual four- mile run. For the occasion each
participant wore a bright gold T-shirt. As the race proceeded,
a line of bright gold shirts spread out along the course of the
Gnattchio Trail. It was a vivid picture of the life of faith.
As followers of Christ, we are spread along the trail of
contemporary society. Perhaps our shirts are not as obvious
as the bright gold ones on the Gnattchio Trail. We have one
nevertheless, which through our witness and service proclaims
the name of Christ. Running together, encouraging, upholding
and appreciating one another along the way, we press on for
the prize. As we do, God willing, not a few who see us pass
will wonder at the meaning of the golden streak and be drawn
to the One who is its inspiration, strength and incomparable
goal.
Rev. Stan Mantle
o
Editorial … Pokraèování ze strany 26
bøemeno, které nevíme jak nést. Nᚠpohled na svìt se mìní.
Mìní se i naše hodnoty. Život jedince tak lehce dostane podobu
chaosu. Jak se v takovém chaosu zorientovat?
Do tohoto lidského chaosu pøichází jaro, nesoucí s sebou
velikonoèní zvìst. Do tohoto chaosu zaznívá mocné Ježíšovo „Je
dokonáno!“ Zní stejnì silnì, jako tenkrát na køíži. Tenkrát, kdy
byl svìt zasažen stejnou chorobou, jako je zasažen dnes. Tato
choroba, která se plíží lidstvem po tisíciletí, zatne své zuby tam,
kde se èlovìk otoèí ke køíži zády a pøestane vnímat hlas Pána
Ježíše. Jak snadno se do této situace èlovìk dostane!
Zvolání „je dokonáno“ vyluèuje jakoukoli možnost další
pokraèující èinnosti.
Ano, Pán Ježíš dokoèil dílo spasení pro èlovìka. Jeho obìt a
nezmìrné utrpení na køíži udìlalo velkou teèku za neštìstím
èlovìka, pøicházejícím v rùzných formách. Zvoláním „je
dokonáno“ se svìt promìnil v kvetoucí korunu stromu. Je
obsypán kvìty nadìje, které si zachovávají svìžest po tisíciletí.
38
Jsou to kvìty nadìje na lepší život. Na život ve spoleèenství Pána
Ježíše Krista, našeho Pána a Spasitele. Jsou to kvìty nadìje na
vìèný život v Božím království.
Kvìty nadìje jsou docela jiné, než kvìty na zahrádce nebo ve
váze. Ty odkvetou. Kvìty nadìje však kvetou stále a je jich velice
mnoho. Kvetou pro každého èlovìka. Staèí se pozvednout z té
mizérie svìta a kvìt si utrhnout. Je však potøeba o kvìt peèovat,
aby nezvadl. Svìžest kvìtu nadìje zaruèuje osobní kontakt
s Pánem Bohem. Svìžest kvìtu nadìje pøemáhá chaos. Vùnì
kvìtu nadìje ovlivòuje pøíchu jara. S vùní kvìtù nadìje se šíøí
také pokoj.
Nevadnou nám naše kvìty? Nech svìží kvìty zdobí Kristovou
církev!
Šéfredaktorka Nataša Legirská
o
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
Betty Sadowski
April 21, 1918 – November 27, 2002
God called Betty Sadowski to her
home in heaven on November 27,
2002, at age 84. She was a stroke
victim and had had several heart
attacks, causing her to be bed- and
wheelchair-bound for more than
seven years, praying always for
others and trusting God for her healing as well, but never a
word of complaint about her suffering. As a born-again child
of God, she entered heaven’s gate by virtue of th sacrificial
death of our Lord Jesus.
Betty grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and was a member of
the now Scranton Road Baptist Church. She grew spiritually under the fundamental teaching of Reverend Bohatec,
Reverend Kmetko and others. During a brief few hours off
(WWII) we were married by Reverend Marshall, pastor of
First Baptist, Ada, Oklahoma.
Our dear mom is survived by and missed very much by
me and our children: Louise, Tom, Janet, and David, as well
as out ten grandchildren and her brother Richard.
And now we thank our Lord for the beautiful memories
we have of the fifty-nine years of marriage which God
blessed us with, and for the sweet, loving and kind Christian example she was to all who knew her.
Felix Sadowski
o
Donation
Please note the change how to send your donations:
All donation should be send in enclosed envelope.
The checks will be delivered to right financial secretaries. (Vera Dors,
Henry Pojman, Jane Rotar or Donna Nesvadba.)
! Gifts for Ladies’ work—make check payable to Czechoslovak
Baptist Women’s Missionary Union.
! Gifts for Convention—make check payable to Czechoslovak
Baptist Convention. On the bottom of the check mark to what
account you are sending your contribution: Convention, Glorious
Hope, Trust Fund, or Scholarship Fund.
 You may send separate check (one for Ladies and one for convention accounts) in the same envelope.
 If you are sending contributions for convention (Convention,
Glorious Hope etc., you may send only one check, and write on
the bottom how you want to divide the amount (for example: Total
$150; $100 Convention, $50 Glorious Hope etc.) You do
not have to send two separate checks.
For your information, financial secretaries’ addresses are as
follows:
USA:
Vera Dors
6621 Elmdale Rd.
Middleburg Hts, OH, 44130
Canada:
Henry Pojman
1516 Pembroke Dr.
Oakville, ON L6H 1V9
George Sommer
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
39
Dear Natasha Legierski:
Last year I was introduced to
Glorious Hope and it stirred
up my Baptist Czech blood,
especially being 100% Czech,
and the periodical has continued to arouse my interest.
In the last issue I enjoyed your editorial on loneliness.
It’s right on. I hope you can keep that perspective when
you get to be my age, an octogenarian born in 1915.
Anyway, this issue was like meeting someone from the
old neighborhood, Chicago, the cradle of Czech Baptist
work. Even the name of Kejø sounded familiar. I just called
an old friend, Mildred Hanzelon, in Largo, Florida, on your
mailing list, who attended the Throop Street church as
a little girl. My mother was baptized there, I believe. This
brings me to my first question. Do you have access to
any of that church’s early records?
The biography of John Kejø (you have to be a Czech
to pronounce that name), as you say, is adapted from N.
Vojte’s book Czechoslovak Baptists. Is there more written about the Throop Street church and the churches that
sprung from there, like Lawndale, Millard, (where I was
married), Cicero, and Berwyn, (my home church, founded
by Rev. Vaclav Shuldes and where I was baptized in 1927
and later pastored by Rev. Bobelik). Is Vojte’s book still
available? How can I get a copy if written in English?
As for Rev. Bobelik, are there any biographical sketches
written about him that are available?
As you can see, Glorious Hope has opened up a glorious hope that I can learn more about the early Czech
Baptists in Chicago that I long to know.
May I hear from you?
Yours sincerely in Christ, John Doudera
)
March 27, 2003
Dear friends,
I was so happy to see the story Fireflies (Brouèci) in
the Children’s Corner of Glorious Hope. In 1942 when
I was 4 years old, my grandfather donated the book
Broucci (printed in 1908) to me in remembrance of him.
Each evening my mother would read a section of it. I can
remember how I looked forward to hearing the story.
You can’t imagine how delighted I was to see the English translation since I cannot read Czech. I am saving the
pages so one day I can put them together in the form of
a book. Is there an English translation already published
as a book? I hope to share the story with our grandbabies
when they are older.
Many thanks to Natasha Legierski for printing the story
in Glorious Hope. Enclosed is a check for the Convention or Glorious Hope wherever it is needed. May God
continue to bless the work that is done.
Sincerely,
Evelyn S. Hanzlik
[You can find the information how to obtain this book at
the end of the Fireflies story in this issue].
)
March 29, 2003
Dear Friends,
I want to thank the Editor, staff, and all who has a part
in getting Glorious Hope together for all of us to enjoy
it. You all deserve a medal for the excellent magazine,
glorifying our Lord Jesus Christ.
May God bless you all!
Lillian Adam, Kalamazoo, MI
o
Check our Convention Web page:
www.ab.edu/czslbaptconv
Are you interested about Czech and Slovak
Christian resources, videos, and tracts?
Look at following web sites:
• www.missionresources.com/slovak.html
• www.gospelvideos.com
• www.tractlist.com
40
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
Mission Trip to the Czech Republic
Misijní cesta do Èeské republiky
“Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” “I, Here am I;
send me” (Isa. 6:8).
„Koho pošlu? Kdo pùjde? Aj já, pošli mne.“ (Iz. 6;8)
Remember:
he door into the Czech Republic is wide open. God
desires that all people be redeemed. God is capable
of bringing the whole Czech nation unto Himself as
He did during the time of John Hus. But remember that
God uses His missionaries to bring about a great awakening. Are you still ready to become God’s ambassadors?
( Dr. Josef Solc, Doing Missions in the Post-Communist
Czech Republic, Glorious Hope, January 2002)
T
Dear Friends,
I am glad to be able to invite on a small collective adventure those of you who are considering visiting a small
exotic country—the Czech Republic, the land of many
of your parents, grandparents or friends.
Are you interested in becoming familiar with the former
steel town Ostrava?
Would you like to encourage our congregation?
Are you interested in volunteering your time for a
week to children from a
housing development?
If so, then my invitation
is for you.
The program will be
prepared and published
at the 2003 Baptist
Convention. Housing in
a “luxury church apartment” and delicious
meals will be provided.
Prayers and preparations
for this program are currently underway.
Ostrava Church, Czech Republic
M
ilí pøátelé,
Mám radost, že mohu pozvat k malému
spoleènému dobrodružství všechny vás, kteøí
uvažujete o návštìvì tak malé a exotické zemì jako je
Èeská republika. Zemì mnoha vašich rodièù, prarodièù
nebo známých.
Máte zájem se seznámit s kdysi „ocelovým“ mìstem
Ostravou?
Chcete povzbudit nᚠsbor?
Máte chu týden vìnovat svùj èas dìtem ze sídlištì?
Pak tedy mé pozvání je právì pro tebe.
Program bude po vzájemné domluvì upøesnìn a zveøejnìn
na konvenci 2003.
Ubytování v „luxusním“ sborovém apartmá a vynikající
místní strava bude zabezpeèena.
Podpora modlitbami probíhá již nyní a podpora praktická
bude na místì.
It will be a pleasure to
meet you!
Tìším se na tebe!
Za ostravský sbor,
Katherina Jariabkova
Czech Baptist Union,
Ostrava
Kateøina Jariabková
Anyone interested, please
contact Natasha:
[email protected]
Ostrava, Czech Republic
o
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
Zájemci hlaste se u Nataši Legierské:
[email protected]
o
41
Fireflies
Jan Karafiát
Translated by Daniela Bísková
A
Part 4
nd they slept and they slept and they slept. When at
last Lucius opened his eyes his father and mother were
already wide awake. They lay in bed talking.
“Mummy,” said Lucius, “can I have some honey?”
“What honey? We have no honey, Lucius.”
“But you know, Mummy. The honey Jeanine sent us
yesterday.”
“Yesterday? Jeanine? You’ve been dreaming, dear.”
“Don’t you remember, Mummy, giving me some honey
already yesterday?”
“What are you talking about, Lucius? You’re still half-asleep.
The last thing we did was to go to Godmother’s house. Don’t
you remember? And after that we
closed everything up quickly because
the cold weather had come. We’ve
been asleep ever since.
She was right. Lucius made a
face. Then he had an idea. “Daddy,
what is it like out-of-doors? Can I go
and have a look?”
“I’m afraid not, my son. It’s
winter-time and very, very cold.
You’d freeze to death if you went
out. Besides, the door is all blocked
up with wood.”
“Couldn’t I just have a peep out
of the window, Daddy?”
“Better not; the window is
blocked up too, and covered with
boards, and if we took it all away the
cold would get in.”
Then mother said that she, too,
would like to look out—just a little peep through the window.
She could light the fire for a bit; it would be quite a good
thing. So then father gave in. He got up and took down the
boards from the window. Lucius was allowed to help. Then they
carefully removed the moss, and at last they were able to look
out. Everywhere there was nothing to be seen but snow. They
could not see the meadow nor the green hill-side, only snow,
snow everywhere. The juniper tree under which their house lay
was so heavily laden that its branches were bent right down with
the weight. But the sun was shining, and the snow glistened in
the light. It was very beautiful, and very, very still. Lucius would
have liked to stay there looking at it, but his father wouldn’t let
him. The cold outside was so bitter that he didn’t dare to leave
the window exposed for a moment longer. So they got to work
and packed in the moss again, and boarded the window over.
Meanwhile mother was busy lighting the fire. She thought it
would be a good idea to make a little soup, and so she did. They
42
said grace and ate up the nice hot broth. But they still began to
feel cold, so they hurried back to bed and talked.
“Daddy, supposing Godfather, Godmother and Lucinda got
buried by snow!”
“But they won’t be. Their house is under the big oak. That’ll
keep off the snow.”
“And what about Jeanine? Where does she live, Mummy?”
“In the moss, among the heather.”
“But she’ll be all covered up by the snow, won’t she? And
she said she’d come and see me off when I go flying for the first
time.”
“Don’t worry about that. Even if her house is covered
with snow she will be all right. She
can always make a fire if she is too
cold.”
“Do you know if she has any
wood, Mummy?”
“She’s sure to have plenty.”
“Is she all alone?”
“Yes, all by herself.”
“Why is she alone?”
“You see, she’s got no one;
her father and mother died a long
time ago.”
“Oh, I couldn’t live all by
myself.”
“But if God wanted it you
would have to.”
“Anyway, Jeanine has honey
and grapes, hasn’t she? I think it was
Jeanine who brought Godmother
the grape.”
“I really don’t know, dear. It may have been.”
And now father joined in. “Lucius, do you really think
Jeanine is all alone?”
“Well, there’s nobody with her.”
“Are you sure there’s nobody with her, Lucius?”
“Who, then?”
“The Lord God is there with her. I’ve often heard Jeanine’s
father say that God looks after obedient fireflies and that nothing
can happen to them. And even if something does happen he
knows about it. Jeanine knows all that. She’s obedient and so
she’s not at all afraid.”
“And do you like her, Daddy?”
“Why, of course I do.”
“And you, Mummy?”
“Of course I do.”
“And does Godmother also like her?”
“Oh, of course she does. All fireflies love one another.”
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
“And Daddy, when is it that we’re going to fly out?”
“We shall have to wait till summer comes round; maybe on
Midsummer night.”
“What do you have to do when you want to give light to
people?”
“You don’t really have to do anything. You just keep flying
about and people can see your light.”
“But supposing you get tired and your wings begin to hurt?”
“Well, then you rest for a bit. But as soon as you feel better
you start off again.”
“And Daddy, what do people do in the winter when we don’t
give them light?”
“This I don’t know, dear. Perhaps they all go to bed and sleep
through the winter as we do. Or perhaps they sit round the fire
and tell stories. But I hear they aren’t always obedient and are
often in trouble.”
“What does that mean? What do they do?”
“Well, they are not always kind to one another.”
“Then I don’t see why we should give them light if they aren’t
kind.”
“That’s not ours to decide. The Lord God wants us to give
them light; so we do.”
Lucius suddenly remembered something his father had said
about sitting round the fire telling stories. “Mummy,” he said,
“tell me a story.”
“I’m afraid I don’t know any.”
“Yes, you do, Mummy. You once told me a story, a long time
ago.”
“What was it about?”
“Don’t you remember? About two cats, Mrs. Pussy and Mr.
Tom.”
“Once upon a time,” began his mother, “a long, long time
ago, there were two cats—Mr. Tom and Mrs. Pussy. Mr. Tom
was as handsome a cat as ever, coal-black from the end of his
tail to the tip of his nose. Mrs. Pussy was even more lovely, for
she was as white as milk from the tip of her nose to the end
of her tail. They were very fond of one another and they had
three kittens—Inky Jim, Johny-Snow and Speckled Jane. Jim was
coal-black, Johny was snow-white and Jane was black and white.
Those three were all very fond of one another and usually got on
well together. They had great romps and races and used to sing
nice little purring songs with their father and mother. One fine
spring morning their mother said—‘Now, my dears, I’m going
out with your father to see what we can get for dinner. Be good
children and don’t quarrel. We shan’t be away long. I’ll make up
the fire before I go so that you’ll be nice and warm.’
And she made up the fire and locked the door from the outside
so that no one could get in. The kittens had a good romp. But
soon they began to get rather rough. Inky Jim and Johny-Snow
started fighting and Speckled Jane didn’t mean to be left out of
the fun; so she joined in. They had started in fun, but they got
fiercer and fiercer, and soon Johny-Snow had had enough of it.
The other two were on top of him and he got annoyed and said
he wasn’t going to play any more. He went and sat by the fire
and started cleaning himself with his little pink tongue. Then he
began talking out loud. ‘I’m glad I’m white,’ he said; ‘I should
hate to be black like a chimney sweep. It must be horrid to be
black; you could never tell if you were clean.’ Then Inky-Jim got
annoyed and started talking. ‘I’m glad I take after father,’ he said;
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
‘it’s so much nicer.’ And now Speckled-Jane chimed in, ‘I am
the most beautiful, I am black and I am white, too.’
This started a quarrel. They soon began pushing one another
this way and that. And so it happened that they knocked over
the hearth brush, and it caught fire; it fell on to the hearthrug
and that caught fire and set fire to a chair; the chair set fire to
the table, and soon the whole room was ablaze. The kittens
tried to get out but the door was fastened. They cried for help
but to no avail. The house was burnt to a cinder because the
kittens were naughty. Their father and mother cried. And not
far from there was a hill and there they hung a bell and it went
ding, dong, ding, dong—and that’s the end of the tale—ding,
dong, ding, dong…”
Lucius listened attentively to the story, holding mother’s
hand all the time; and when it was finished he still kept hold
of it. Ding —dong, ding—dong, he went on repeating softly to
himself till he went to sleep, ding—dong. And they all slept and
slept.
Reprinted with permission
Drawings: Nicole Malek
o
You may order English version of Fireflies for US$19.50
postpaid at following address:
Glorious Hope, Rt. 4, Box 58D, Philippi, WV 26416, USA
Attention! Attention!
Firefly!
Do you children enjoy the stories about Lucius?
Surely you can imagine what
the little firefly looked like. We
know that it had wings so that it could fly and he
certainly had little legs so that he could crawl.
He also needed a lamp with which to light his
way. You know what kids? Draw a picture of Lucius, and
send your picture to the publishing office. We would like to
know what you think he looks like. The story about Lucius
is very long, so we will publish it in short episodes that will
be continued in every issue. We will gladly illustrate your
picture of Lucius in our magazine.
Don’t wait! Pick your pencil or crayons up now and draw!
You can even paint Lucius if you want to. Send your picture
as soon as possible because we are preparing the next
issue of Glorious Hope and we need your picture in it!
43
Brouèci
Jan Karafiát
4. Èást
A
spali a spali a spali. Když se Brouèek probudil, byli
tatínek a maminka vzhùru. Leželi v posteli a povídali
si.
„Maminko, dáte, mnì medu?“
„Medu? Jakého pak medu? Brouèku, vždy žádný
nemáme.“
,,Ale víte, co nám vèera Janinka poslala,“
„Vèera? Janinka? I to se ti, holeèku, nìco zdálo.“
„I ne, maminko. Vždy už jste mnì vèera dala.“
„I toto. To se ti zdálo. Jen se zpamatuj. Víš, naposledy jsme
byli u kmotøièky, pak jsme hned všecko ucpali, a od té doby
spíme.“
Škoda. Ale když to tak bylo !
Brouèek se skoro mraèil, tu mu napadlo. „Tatínku, jak pak
jest venku? Já bych se rád podíval.“
Ale tatínek; „Milý Brouèku, jest tam zima, to bys zmrzl. A
vždy máme dvéøe zarovnané døívím.“
„Ale, tatínku, mohli bychom se podívat oknem.“
„I, to jest také zabednìné a ucpané. A našlo by nám sem
zimy.“
A teprv, když maminka povídala, že by se také ráda podívala,
jak to venku vypadá a že by pak trochu zatopila, tak tatínek, že
ano. Vstal, odbednil od okna prkénko, a Brouèek mu pomáhal.
Pak pomalounku oddìlali mech, a tu to vidìli. Samý, samý
sníh, palouk pryè, stráò pryè, a nic než sníh. Na jalovci nad
chaloupkou jim ho tolik leželo, že se vìtve až prohýbaly. Slu-
44
níèko tak trošku svítilo, a sníh se tak krásnì tøpytil, a bylo
pratichounko. Brouèek by se byl rád ještì na to díval, ale
tatínek, že tam mrzne, a že musí honem zas okno ucpat a
zabednit. A tak okno ucpali a zabednili.
Maminka zatím už zatápìla, a že pøi tom uvaøí kapku
polívky. A uvaøila. Pìknì se pomodlili a jedli. Ale bylo jim
pøece trochu zima, a tak si honem zas lehli a povídali.
„Ale, tatínku, jestli se u kmotøièky zachumelili?“
„Ó nezachumelili. Oni zùstávají pod dubem.“
„Ale Janinka! Maminko, kde že zùstává?“
„Ona zùstává v mechu mezi vøasou.“
„Ona se zachumelila, viïte? A ona povídala, že mne
vyprovodí, až ponejprv poletím.“
„I neboj se. A se
zachumelila. Však ona si zatopí,
když jí jest zima.“
„A má døíví?“
„I bodej by mìla.“
„A ona tam jest sama?“
„Sama.“
„Proè pak jest sama?“
„Inu, když nikoho nemá. Tatínek
a maminka jí už dávno zemøeli.“
„Ó, to já, bych nebyl sám!”
„I, kdyby to tak Pán Bùh chtìl! To
bys musel pìknì poslechnout.“
„Nech. Však Janinka má med
a víno. Viïte, to víno dostala
kmotøièka od ní?“
„Já nevím, milé dítì. Snad.“
Tu je tatínek vytrhl: „Brouèku,
myslíš opravdu, že jest tam Janinka
sama?“
„I když tam nikdo s ní není.“
„Co pak s ní nikdo není!“
„A kdo pak?”
„Pán Bùh jes s ní. A její tatínek øíkával, že poslušné
brouèky má Pán Bùh na starosti, tak že se jim nemùže
nic stát, a i když se jim nìco stane, že jest to tak dobøe, A
Janinka to dobøe ví a poslouchá, a nic se nebojí.“
„A máte ji rád, tatínku?“
„I, bodej bych nemìl.“
„A vy, maminko, také?“
„I arci že mám.“
„A kmotøièka ji má také ráda?“
„I to, má. Brouèci se mají všickni rádi.“
„A tatínku, kdy že tedy už poletíme?“
„Inu poèkej, až bude zas léto. Tak asi o svatém Janì.“
„A jak pak se to dìlá, když se tìm lidem svítí?“
„I to se nijak nedìlá. To se jen lítá a oni vidí.“
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
„Ale jak pak, když už bolí køídla?“
„Pak se jim trochu odpoèine. Ale hned se zas letí.“
„A tatínku, co pak ti lidé teï dìlají, když vy jim
nesvítíte?“
„Milé dítì, to já nevím, co oni si poèínají. Oni snad také
spí, anebo si povídají pohádky. Ale já vždycky slýchám, že
jsou neposlušní, a že se jim nedobøe vede.”
„Nedobøe? Co pak to jest?“
„Inu, oni se nemají rádi.“
„Ale, to já bych jim nesvítil, když se nemají rádi.“
„I, do toho nám nic není. Když Pán Bùh chce, abychom
jim svítili, tak my jim svítíme.“
Brouèkovi uvázly na mysli ty pohádky. „Maminko,
povídejte mnì nìjakou pohádku.“
„Ale, když já, Brouèku, už žádnou neumím.“
„I víte, tu, kterou jste mnì povídala už dávno.“
„O èem pak byla?“
„I, víte, o tom kocourkovi a koèièce. Víte?“
A maminka že bude povídat ‘a povídala:
„Tak byl jednou jeden kocourek a jedna koèièka. Už
jest tomu dávno. Kocourek byl celý krásný èerný jako uhel,
a koèièka celá krásná bílá jako mléko. A mìli se rádi. Tu
se jim jednou narodila koátka. Tøi, dva kocourci a jedna
koèièka. Ten jeden byl celý krásný èerný jako uhel, ten druhý
byl celý krásný bílý jako mléko, a ta koèièka byla krásná
morovatá. Mìli se rádi a byli hodní. Vždycky si pìknì hráli,
anebo pomáhali tatínkovi a mamince pøíst. Jednou pak z
jara povídala maminka: Dìti, já pùjdu s tatínkem chytnout
nìjakou myšku anebo nìco, abyste nemìli hlad. Buïte
hodní a mìjte se rádi. My pøijdeme hned. A ještì vám zde
drobátko zatopím, aby vám nebylo zima.
A ještì jim drobátko zatopila, a šla a zavøela za sebou
dvéøe, aby jim tam nìkdo nevlezl. Koátka si pìknì hrála.
Až pak kocourci že se budou porážet. A koèièka že také. A
tak se poráželi a poráželi, tak že se ten bílý kocourek dostal
dospod. Jeho to bolelo, a také ho to zlobilo. A tak že on si
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
už s nima nebude hrát. Sedl si ke kamnùm, pìknì se lízal, a
povídal jim: Však hleïte, já jsem krásný bìlounký jako mléko,
a ne takový špinavý jako sopouch, a takový èerný jako uhel.
Ale druhý kocourek: Ó, že on jest mnohem krásnìjší, že jest
na vlas takový jako tatínek. A koèièka se teprv poèala chlubit:
Ó že ona jest nekrásnìjší, že jest èerná i bílá.
A tak se zaèali hádat, a hádali se a hádali, a pak se zaèali
strkat, a strkali se a strkali, aþ strèili do kamen. Kamna se zboøila,
oheò se vysypal, ve svìtnici to poèalo hoøet, police, postel,
almara, stùl, všecko hoøelo—a koátka chtìla utéci, ale dvéøe
byly zavøeny. A tak køièeli a køièeli, ale oheò je pøece sežral.
A když pøišli tatínek a maminka, už byli kocourci a koèièka
spáleni, a chaloupka byla spálena, a všecko bylo spáleno, proto,
že byla koátka neposlušná. A tatínek a maminka plakali. A
tam nedaleko byl kopec, oni na nìm povìsili zvonec, a zvonili
a zvonili, a už jest té pohádce konec. Bim bam, bim bam, bim
bam.“
Brouèek poslouchal. Jemu se to líbilo. Držel maminku za
ruku, øíkal si bim bam, bim bam, až pøi tom usnul, bim bam.
A tak spali a spali.
Pøetišeno s povolením
o
Kresby: Nicole Malek
Pozor! Pozor!
Brouèek!
Líbí se vám vyprávìní o Brouèkovi, dìti?
Jistì si umíte pøedstavit, jak
takový malý Brouèek vypadal.
Víme, že mìl køidélka, aby mohl létat.
Urèitì mìl nožky, aby mohl lézt. Potøeboval
také svìtélko, aby mohl svítit. Víte co, dìti?
Nakreslete Brouèka tak, jak si myslíte, že vypadal
a pošlete obrázek do redakce. Rádi bychom vìdìli, jak
si Brouèka pøedstavujete. Vyprávìní o Brouèkovi je velmi
dlouhé, budeme Brouèkova dobrodružství otiskovat
na pokraèování. Vaše obrázky s radostí použijeme pro
ilustraci.
Neèekejte, vezmìte si tužku nebo pastelky a kreslete!
Mùžete použít i barvy a Brouèka namalovat. Pošlete
obrázek, co nejdøíve, protože pøipravujeme další èást a
možná vᚠobrázek bude právì ten nejvhodnìjší!
45
E
aster—it comes with a sense of gladness and deep personal satisfaction.
The goodness never goes away, even
if you have experienced many Easters over a
lifetime. Never does it grow old or dull. No
one says, “Been there, done that.” Easter lies
just too close to the core of our personalities
and faith. Once upon a time we were shaped
for the rest of our lives by an understanding
that came to us one way or another: “Jesus
Lives and So Shall I.”
If we did not have this focus to live with, life would be
pretty bleak. Just think about the war weeks we have so
recently been through. Or about the diminishing strength
that comes along with increasing age. Or the repeated
disappointments that life has brought into every life. Or
the vicious diseases that keep popping up. Yesterday it was
AIDS. Today it is SARS. There are times when I think,
Why do I keep on starting my day with the discouragements
of the newspaper or going nightly to the TV to visit with
CNN?
This, however, I know: that at a certain foundational
time in my life, word got through that Jesus Christ is alive
forevermore. That is a conviction somehow overshadowing
everything else going on round about. And here was the
further good news: his aliveness (in dimensions of reality so very different from the world I experience daily) is
something he wishes for us to be able to share also. It is
said he prays this at the very side of God the Father.
That Christ has wanted us to have his same privilege
and that Scripture has declared we may be one with him in
the gift of personal death turned into personal life. . . well,
that makes everything quite acceptable in the living of these
days. The strangeness of this world and the debilitations
of sin and a thousand dysfunctions are not on the agenda
forever. One day we will look back on all of this and smile
at how we managed to get so “worked up” over things of
passing significance.
It is possible to get really messed up on Planet
Earth apart from believing with all your heart that “Jesus
Lives, and So Shall I.” But with resurrection belief securely
locked in one’s soul, the news of the day will have its right
perspective and be plenty fascinating besides.
God bless this Easter season to you and keep you
fresh in the best news of all.
V
elikonoce- pøicházejí s pøíchutí radosti a
hlubokého vnitøního zadostuèinìní. Nezáleží
na tom, kolikrát velikonoce prožijeme v
prùbìhu našeho života, tato pohoda z nich nikdy
nevymizí. Nikdy nezevšední ani se neomrzí. Nikdo
také neøíká: "Vidìl jsem, zažil jsem". Velikonoce jsou
prostì velice úzce spojené s jádrem naší osobností a
víry. Kdysi jsme slyšeli : "Ježíš žije, i já budu žít", a
ta slova nás jednou provždy sformovala.
Jestliže by toto nebylo zamìøením našeho života,
život by mohl být docela bezútìšný. Jen si to promítnìme do nìkolika
posledních týdnù války, které jsme svìdky. Promítnìme si to do
situace, kdy s pøibývajícím vìkem ubývá sil, nebo do života se stále
se opakujícími zklamáními, která s sebou život pøináší.
Vèera to bylo AIDS. Dnes to je SARS. Nìkdy si øíkám, proè
vlastnì zaèínám den deprimujícími
novinami nebo veèer zapínám
televizní stanici CNN?
Jistì však vím, že v klíèovém
období mého života jsem pochopil,
že Ježíš Kristus žije na vìky vìkù.
Toto pøesvìdèení jaksi zastírá
všechno, co se kolem mne dìje.
Za tím následuje ještì lepší zpráva:
Pán Ježíš si pøeje, abychom se
dokázali s jeho hmatatelnou
existencí (jenž dennì prožívám, a
která se projevuje ve skuteènosti
zcela jinak, než tento svìt), také
sdílet. Èteme, že se takto modlí k
Bohu Otci.
Kristus chtìl, abychom mìli stejnou výsadu. Písmo øíká, že s
Ním se mùžeme ztotožnit skrze dar smrti promìnìný v život...tedy,
to pomáhá vyrovnávat se s tím, co život v souèasnosti pøináší.
Odcizení svìta a zhoubnost høíchu a tisíc dalších disfunkcí nejsou
na programu stále. Pøijde èas, kdy se s úsmìvem ohlédneme na to,
jak jsme se dokázali vypoøádat s bezvýznamnými vìcmi.
Je možné se dostat do velkých zmatkù zde na Zemi, jestliže
nevìøíme , že „Ježíš Kristus žije, i já budu žít“. Naopak víra ve
vzkøíšení zakotvena hluboko v duši, zpùsobí, že i denní zprávy
budeme vnímat ve správné perspektivì i se všemi senzacemi.
Pán Bùh žehnej toto velikonoèní období a obèerstvi vás tou
nejlepší zvìstí!
Pøeložila Nataša Legierská
Rev. Robert Dvorak
o
46
o
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
F
inally it seems that spring is in the air.
The days are warmer, and the grass is
starting to turn green. Spring flowers
are beginning to push through the ground.
When I wake up early in the morning, I hear
the birds singing. Soon it will be Easter.
This year as we come to this joyous
celebration, I feel there are many people
with heavy hearts. There are loved ones
away at war—mothers anxious about their
young sons and daughters on the front
lines, families grieving the loss of loved
ones. Unemployment and serious illness
burden the hearts of individuals and families. A general feeling of unrest presides over
the world situation. We are living in troubled times.
Lately when my thoughts dwell on things like this, the words
of an old hymn keep coming to my mind.
In times like these I have a Savior,
In times like these I have an anchor;
I’m very sure I’m very sure,
My anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock!
This Rock is Jesus,
Yes He’s the One,
This Rock is Jesus The only One.
Ruth Caye Jones
What a joy and comfort it is to have Jesus with us in the
hard times of life. This Easter I am so thankful that Jesus is my
Lord and Savior. In times like these there must be many who
are searching for something to hold them steady and provide
assurance. It is my hope and prayer that I will have the opportunity to share Jesus with some who are looking for an anchor
for their life.
Heather Mantle
o
Ladies’ Contribution:
see Donation
on page 39
Jubilee … Continues from page 30
Kulaté jubileum … Pokraèování ze strany 30
now speaks English as if she were born American!) Among other
things she was president of the Union of Music Teachers in West
Virginia and president of the sisters at the Czechoslovak Baptist
Convention of the United States and Canada.
If you visit our beloved Sommers, you will encounter some
uncommon hospitality. In their home you truly feel like part of
a royal family. With this experience you suspect hidden motives,
which we find in the book of Joshua “…me and my house will serve
the Lord” (Joshua 24:15).
We wish for our sister Marija the closeness of God into her
future years and the strength and health that He provides so that
she can continue to spread God’s love. That has been the motto
of her life. We are grateful to God that he brought this amazing
woman into our fellowship. And to you, our dear sister, we are
grateful for how you have faithfully followed the Lord Jesus Christ.
May God richly bless you!
Editors
všemi situacemi (anglicky hovoøí jako rozená Amerièanka) a na
svém kontì má øadu úspìchù. Nìkolik let byla také pøedsedkyní
svazu uèitelù hudby v Západní Virginii a pøedsedkyní sester
pøi Èeskoslovenské baptistické konvence Spojených státù a
Kanady.
Navštívíte-li naše milé Sommerovi, setkáte se s nebývalou
pohostinností. V jejich domì se opravdu cítíte jako èlenové
královské rodiny. Za touto skuteèností tušíte skrytý motiv,
který nacházíme v knize Jozue: „...já a mùj dùm budeme sloužit
Hospodinu.“ (Jozue 24;15)
Pøejeme sestøe do dalších let Boží pøítomnost na každý den,
sílu a zdraví, aby mohla i nadále pokraèovat v šíøení Boží lásky,
která je také mottem jejího života. Pánu Bohu jsme vdìèni za to,
že sestru do našeho obecenství pøivedl a Tobì, sestro za vìrnost
v následování Pána Ježíše Krista! Pán Bùh Ti bohatì žehnej!
Redakce
o
Glorious Hope • Slavná nadìje • March–April 2003
o
47